CHENNAI: England's top-order may have encountered a sudden collapse after a solid start in the first ODI against India, but their template of aggressive batting might not change going forward. For a team that assembled days before the ODIs and had one day of training, England got off to a good start against Jasprit Bumrah and Co before going from 61/0 to 80/5 in a mini collapse.
Though they went on to lose the match, expect Harry Brook and his men to stick to their approach at the top, led by opener Ben Duckett. The left-hander, who scored a breezy 43 off 45 balls on Tuesday, had hoped for a smooth transition after the New Zealand Tests. And that is exactly what happened despite the result.
Calling it a "relatively new side", Duckett felt winning against India could be a massive confidence boost for a team that does not play as many ODIs. "I think obviously it's still a relatively new side. We don't play a load of one-day cricket. But I think playing against India is always one of the, alongside Australia, biggest series we can play. We have already spoken about the incredible names that India has on their side. We, as a youngish team, could win this series, which will be massive confidence for us moving forward. It's a world-class side, one of the best in the world. We'll certainly be looking at it to try and win the series and hopefully take that confidence moving forward," Duckett had said in a select-media interaction facilitated by Sony Sports Network before the first ODI.
The left-hander backed skipper Brook to take the team forward. "Brook just leads by example in the way that he plays," he said, before adding, "He wants us to play an aggressive, kind of fearless brand of cricket and he goes out there and does that every time. We are very fortunate to be playing under him. He's a great captain. He's always looking to take wickets in the field and trying to have funky fields and always trying to get one over the batsman. Look, as a batter, I mean, there's not many better all-format players in the world right now than him. He's pretty frightening on his day and I think he showed that in the T20 series that when he gets going he can hit the ball anywhere he wants. We're very lucky to have him by our side," Duckett said.
Watch ENG vs IND - 1st ODI on July 14, 2026, from 3:30 PM IST live on Sony Sports Ten 1 SD & HD.
